The essays gathered here revolve around the question of the possibility of literature about the Holocaust and the usefulness of literature in general. "We cannot be human without having the capacity for pain within us, as well as the capacity for cruelty. But we are not only the potential victims of executioners: the executioners are our kind. We must also ask ourselves: Is there nothing in our nature that makes such horrors impossible? And we must probably answer ourselves: indeed, there is nothing. A thousand obstacles stand in our way... Nevertheless, this is not impossible. Therefore, we are not only capable of pain, but also of the frenzy of torture.".